


2,570 Miles

by overshadows



Category: Daredevil (TV)
Genre: F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-06
Updated: 2016-01-16
Packaged: 2018-05-12 05:59:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,053
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5654986
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/overshadows/pseuds/overshadows
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Do I really have to remind you of all the times I've stitched you up? I feel like you owe me a favor or two.”<br/>Matt sighs, “Yeah, but why this?”<br/>“If you'd ever met my family, you wouldn't be asking that question.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> There's a bit of text towards the end you'll need to hover over to get the translation in English. Not just in this chapter, but throughout all future chapters, probably.
> 
> Edit 1-16-16: There will be no more hover text because it was too much hassle. The English translation will be in the footnotes from now on.

 

Claire rests her elbows on the counter and watches Matt as he cooks himself an omelet, waiting for an answer. She's already a couple of minutes late for work, but what she's asking for needs to be done in person, not over the phone.

“Do I really have to remind you of all the times I've stitched you up? I feel like you owe me a favor or two.” Matt sighs, “Yeah, but why this?” “If you'd ever met my family, you wouldn't be asking that question,” she mumbles into her mug as she takes a sip of coffee.

He pushes the contents of the pan onto a plate and sighs once more. “Okay fine. I'll do it.”

Before heading out for the gym, Matt calls Foggy to explain to him why he won't be around in the next couple of days. Much to Foggy's chagrin, he wasn't invited.

“I think Claire's family has a limit on how many gringos can attend,” Matt's voice comes through the speaker phone in their office. Foggy crosses his arms like a child who's about to throw a tantrum. “That's fine! Me and Karen will have tons of fun here and the only gringo who isn't invited is you!” Matt hears Karen's voice faintly in the background, overlapping over Foggy's. _“No, we won't!”_

 

The following day, they're packed are now boarding their plane. Not being a huge fan of flying, Matt is overjoyed that it takes just a couple of hours to get to Miami from New York.

“Why is all of this necessary?” He finally asks her as he settles into his seat by the window.

Claire groans just thinking about it. “It takes a toll on my entire soul to have to show up alone to weddings and family reunions. It's a constant barrage of pity and, 'Where's the boyfriend?'"

Matt chuckles, “Ouch. Now I see why the lying is important.”

“Oh, that's just the tip of the iceberg. My all time favorite is, 'Aww, still single, huh?'”

He isn't able to stop himself from laughing at Claire's tone of voice when she says that. Matt apologizes and says, “In my defense, it is rather funny.”

“Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up, _Daredevil_ ,” she whispers. “In a couple of hours my family will be bugging you, too. I'd like to see you laughing then.”

He apologizes once more then asks, “Speaking of, what's our story?”

Claire's eyebrows furrow. “What do you mean?”

“Well, we can't exactly say you found me in a dumpster, can we?”

“Hm, I suppose not.” She leans on the arm rest between them, coming closer to him. He's suddenly keenly aware of her warmth and the dab of perfume on her wrists. “How about we say we met at the hospital. Me, a tired, overworked nurse, stitching up a clumsy patient who's also really easy on the eyes and I thought, 'Hey, I think I'll keep him.' How's that?”

Claire then pushes Matt's hair to the side, and he has to muster up all his energy to stop himself from leaning into her touch. Doing so would begin to blur the lines between friendship and something more. Claire hasn't changed her mind about turning this into a serious relationship, and he would rather have her as a friend than not have her in his life at all.

Still, the words 'I think I'll keep him' echo in Matt's mind and he swallows hard. He finally smiles and says, “Sounds good.”

“Now that that's settled, we should take this time to get more comfortable with each other. Physically, I mean.”

Matt raises his eyebrows and smirks. “Why, Claire, I had no idea you had fantasies of joining the mile high club.”

“That's not what I meant!” She laughs and smacks him on the shoulder.

He laughs as well and says, “Well, I'd say that was pretty familiar gesture between a couple,” while pointing at the spot where she hit him.

“No, I meant more like,” she smiles and grabs his hand, threading her fingers through his, “like this, _baby_.”

The word feels odd on her tongue, yet Claire knows she could grow to like it. However, Matt now knows this is a mistake because his heart soars when she calls him baby. Who would have thought he would be this far gone before their plane even leaves the airport?

 

As they walk through the tunnel, surrounded by a sea of passengers, Claire spots her family. They're hard to miss as they're the loudest group of people in the airport.

“Hold on tight and pretend you love me,” Claire whispers to Matt. It wouldn't require much acting on his part.

When they come closer to her family, for a moment, an older woman recoils in horror. “Claire!” She reaches out to touch the shaved side of her head. _ “¡¿Qué te hiciste?! ¡Tu cabello era tan hermoso! ¡Dios mío, te vas a mirar tan fea en las fotos!”_1

Matt is holding onto her for safety and he can hear and feel the muscles in Claire's arm tense up, her heart rate speeds up; she's obviously annoyed. “Good to see you too, mami.”

_“Inés, déjala en paz por favor. Apenas se acaba de bajar del avión.”_ 2 Claire's father, Arturo, comes to her rescue, like always.

Claire's sixteen-year-old sister Alex kisses her teeth and says, “Don't listen to her, she don't know anything about style. You look so good.”

“I also think you look good, and it's _my_ wedding and _my_ wedding pictures, so _my_ opinion is the only one that actually matters,” Jasmine, the bride, cackles and kisses Claire on the cheek.

“Where's Elisa?” Claire asks her family once she realizes one of her sisters is missing.

“She's with a client. She must think Eli is new to the game and can't decorate a house in a way that a decrepit old lady would like. _Pero eso no importa,_ ”3 Claire's other sister Adriana says with a lilt in her voice, _“¿Quién es él?”_ 4 She asks and gestures at Matt who's been listening intently to their conversation.

“Oh!” Claire beams. “Guys, this is Matt. He's my boyfriend.”

All of them almost shout in unison, “Boyfriend?”

_“Mamita, ¿porque nunca me dijiste que estabas saliendo con un jincho?”_ 5 Claire gives Inés a look that has 'knock it off' written all over it. _“No te enfades. No lo digo negativamente, si es muy guapo.”_ 6

_“Muchas gracias, señora,”_ 7 Matt replies and Inés almost passes out from embarrassment.

Claire's sisters have a quick laugh at her expense, then descend upon Matt. All three of them push Claire out of the way, all clamoring to greet him and find out more about him. Jasmine is the one who snatches his arm off Claire's to shake his hand. “I'm Jasmine, but everyone calls me Jaz. Welcome to the family!”

"Yeah, she's been alone for such a long time! I'm glad you finally came along!" Adriana laughs.

All of them are talking a mile a minute, asking questions about his and Claire's "relationship", his life, his family, his job. Matt is suddenly overwhelmed, yet over all their voices, he can clearly hear Claire laughing.

* * *

 

What did you do to yourself?! Your hair was so beautiful! My God, you're going to look horrible in the pictures! 1

Inés, leave her alone. She just got off the plane.2

But that doesn't matter,3

Who's he?4

Honey, why didn't you tell me you were dating a white guy?5

Don't get mad. I'm not saying it negatively, he's very handsome.6

Thank you very much, ma'am7


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It has been brought to my attention that some people were having trouble with seeing the translations. I've left the hover text but gone ahead and added footnotes as well. Sorry for the inconvenience!

 

They all pile into Arturo's van and he begins driving. Claire catches up with her parents and sisters. She's obviously happy, though to an outsider it may seem like they were arguing considering how loud they're speaking. The windows are all open and Matt can smell the ocean despite them not being near it. Claire's hand is safely in his, and in that moment, everything feels okay. Perhaps this wedding came at just the perfect time for him to relax. Being away from home for a little bit of time, he can just be Matt Murdock, Claire Temple's “boyfriend”, and nothing else.

When the van stops, Matt is confused. He hears people, too many people, and it feels and sounds nothing like a home. He asks Claire where they are.

"Oh, right. They're having their last fitting, and I kind of need a dress. I'll explain later," she says and gets out of the van.

 

“I want my gown to be so tight it looks like it's painted on,” Jaz says with a smirk on her face.

 _“No sé por qué lo quieres tan apretado, te vas a mirar como una salchicha, mi amor.”_ 1

“I'm not gonna have this body forever, and I wanna take advantage of it,” she replies, then flips her hair over her shoulder. Typical Jaz. What's also typical of Jaz is her short fuse. The previous fitting is overlapping on Jaz's fitting time. She's got her arms crossed over her chest and is rapidly tapping her foot. Matt can sense the tension across the room. When Renata the seamstress, who is a friend of Claire's family, finally comes to greet them, Jaz throws her hands in the air.

"Finally! As if I don't have a million things to do today!” Next she turns her attention to Claire. “You go look for something while we try on our gowns, and you better be done by the time we are!” Jaz threatens her.

_"Ay Inés, no te sorprendas si le doy unas buenas patadas a esta hija tuya,"_ 2 Renata says and follows Jaz into the back.

Claire is clearly stressed out and she's glad she gets a break from her sister for a while or they would surely end up fighting and rolling around on the floor like they did when they were kids.

 

Matt follows Claire as she browses the store. “Don't the bridesmaids all wear the same dresses?”

“I'm not a bridesmaid,” she says while looking through the racks. “Neither are my other sisters.”

“Aren't sisters usually the bridesmaids?”

Claire laughs, “Usually, yes, but clearly you don't know us very well. Alex is a pain in the ass and didn't want to be one. And since we didn't know if I'd be coming, she didn't want to leave me out while letting my sisters in. Plus, if you think they're insufferable now, imagine them fighting over the 'maid of honor' title. It could possibly trigger World War III.”

Claire picks out a few good candidates and goes to try them on. Antonia, who is Renata's daughter, ushers Matt into the dressing room as well. "It's no problem!" She says while gently pushing him in. "Keep your hands to yourself, though!"

Matt looks as if he's about to explode from embarrassment, but Claire takes it in stride. She explains that it's fine with her, and besides that, this could also be seen as something couples are comfortable doing with each other.

Matt sits down on a chair in the corner and waits. When Claire puts the dresses on the hook on the back of the door, she looks at him and laughs. He's as still as a statue, his shoulders are all tense, and he's gripping his cane so tight he could almost grind it into dust. He doesn't even begin to relax until Claire tells him to.

She tries on her first choice. “It's a teal lace, long sleeve, above the knee dress," she tells him. "I can move around in it pretty well, and it shows off a lot of leg, which I like.”

"Is it something a woman would wear to a wedding?”

Claire scrunches her nose, “Maybe... but I don't think it's for me.” One down, a few more to go.

“Okay, this one is a floor-length, strapless, cool minty color.” Claire twirls in front of the mirror. “There's beaded detail at the waist,” she says and grabs his hand and puts it up to the area underneath her bust. Matt's fingers dance across the many beads of different size and texture. She doesn't realize until it's too late that this could be seen as something intimate, but she continues. “It's, uh, a flow-y, pleated material,” she swallows thickly. It would be so easy to tighten the grip on his wrist and push it further down, under the guise of having him feel the material.

“This one is, uh, g-good. Good choice,” he clears his throat and pulls his hand back.

“Uh, now that I think about it, it's kind of hot. No good for dancing,” she says and quickly fans herself, though the dress isn't to blame. Matt hears the urgent zipping of the dress and the sound of the fabric rustling which is like nails on a chalkboard. He's suddenly glad she nixed that one.

Claire pulls on a [black halter mini dress](https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/49/dd/62/49dd6210d34b2da1e59dbb3f94bead49.jpg), which would be rather plain without the gold belt around the waist and the open, lace back. “Oh, I think we've got a winner,” she says and smooths it out. She sees Matt's hand twitch and she wonders if he expects her to make him feel the dress again.

Claire bites her lip, thinking about how she would like nothing more than to have him touch her once more. “I would have you, you know... It's just that there's not much to touch,” she looks at her nearly bare back in the mirror. “Trust me.”

“Oh.” He pauses. “I-I'm sure it's lovely,” he tells her and tries to think about anything other than her silky smooth skin.

 

After everything gets sorted out, they go their separate ways, and Matt and Claire get dropped off at her parent's home.

"We're staying in my old bedroom, actually," she says as they climb the stairs, taking their luggage with them. Every time she goes back, she half expects to see her room as it used to be. But time passes, and no one in their right mind is going to let a perfectly good bedroom go to waste.

"Bed's still the same, though everything else is different. Mom never liked my style. She'd say to me all the time, _'¡No me gusta nada eso de punk!'_ "3

He just has to laugh because he would have never imagined Claire like that. "You were, like, one of those weird goth kids?"

She jabs a finger at his chest, "Hey, it was punk. There's a difference."

"I'm sure you used to sneak out all the time, or snuck some of those punk boys in here," he smiles.

Claire scoffs, kneeling on the chaise lounge by the window and opens it to let some fresh air in. "Yeah, right. You try sneaking into the White House someday, it'll go just as well as someone trying to sneak out of a Latino household."

Matt makes his way over to Claire and she pulls him down to sit next to her. "I'm actually really interested in young, punk Claire Temple and what she got up to. Tell me more about her," he grins.

"Hmm," she says and smirks. "I know you're making fun of me, but I was really cool, alright? I had this leather jacket I wore everyday. I bought it at a thrift store and it was falling apart at the seams, but I didn't care. Mom just about had a fit when I started going through that phase."

"Why?" He asks her with amusement in his voice.

"Because in her eyes I was a step away from worshiping the devil. Dad didn't really care what I did. He said as long as I didn't get anything tattooed or pierced, and toned it down for church, I could do whatever I wanted. I was a good kid, though. I think the only thing I did that enraged my mother was when I dyed my hair."

"I imagine that went as well as I think it did."

"She just about kicked me out of the house!" She laughs, remembering the yelling coming from Inés. "She could scream at me all she wanted, but no one was gonna take away the fire engine red from my hair. In the end she was right when she said it was a huge mistake, because the bleach fried my hair, but like hell I was ever gonna admit that to her."

Matt chuckles, and he can't help but wonder if they would have been friends when they were younger. If a girl like her would have given the time of day to a boy like him.

"What about you? What was your childhood like?" She winces straight away when she realizes that that question is bound to bring up awful memories. "I'm sorry, Matt. I didn't mean-"

He cuts her off. "It's fine, don't worry about it." He thinks for a moment, then smiles that lopsided smile that makes Claire's cheeks heat up. "Well, I wasn't punk like you, that's for sure. The nuns wouldn't have taken kindly to that."

"I'm guessing you were a geek?" She teases him.

"You could say that, yeah," Matt grins. "I was quiet, kept to myself for the most part. I didn't really come into my own until I was in college. That's where I met Foggy."

"And you've been together ever since?" She giggles.

"And we've been together ever since," he repeats after her. They sit quietly for a few minutes, enjoying the sun and the cool breeze.

"Do you have anything planned for today?" He asks her.

Claire shakes her head. "No, I've got nothing. Why? Did you wanna do something?"

He points his thumb in the general direction of the bed and says, "I was thinking maybe we could-"

Claire interrupts him with an overly dramatic gasp and brings her hand up to her chest. "Matthew Murdock! In my childhood bed?!"

"A nap is what I had in mind," he tells her, though he can't stop the blush that's creeping up his face.

"A nap sounds great, actually," she giggles as she gets up, patting his knee. "You get the foot of the bed."

 

It's close to 3 A.M. and everyone has long since fallen asleep. Alex had to be carried up to her bedroom, as filling bits of tulle with Jordan Almonds was much too boring for a teenager. Now, Claire and her parents are the last ones standing.

They had been working quietly until Inés breaks the silence. _“¿Y cómo va el trabajo?”_ 4

“Good. Hectic, long, scary,” Claire replies, fighting back a yawn.

_ “¿Es allí donde se conocieron? Trabajas todo el día y la noche, yo sé que no tienes tiempo para citas amorosas.” _ 5

And there it was. Inés had a flair for starting a conversation innocently enough, then ending it with a barb meant to rile her up. Claire has long since learned not to show signs that she was annoyed.

“We did, actually. He came into the hospital one day and that's how we met.”

Inés tosses a bundle of almonds into a box they've almost filled to the brim. _“Sólo estoy diciendo que asumí que no tenías tiempo para nada, porque tu trabajo ocupa la mayoría de tu tiempo. Ni siquiera me dijiste que tenías novio, ya que nunca me llamas.”_ 6

She can't help but take the bait. “Mom-”

However, Inés interrupts her. _“Y ¿cómo puede caminar? Sobre todo en Nueva York. Me imagino que es bastante peligroso.”_ 7

_“Camina con las piernas, igual que yo. Igual que usted.”_ 8

_“Por favor, Claire, no somos iguales. Él esta cieguito y yo no. ¿Cómo puedes estar con alguien así?”_ 9

Claire wouldn't say her mother is a truly hateful person, she just has a habit of speaking just because she can. Still, it's the things she says and the manner in which she says them that makes Claire's blood boil. _“Mami, por favor,”_ 10 she warns her.

_“Sólo te estoy diciendo lo que pienso. ¡No tienes que ponerte a llorar, coño!”_ 11 She nudges her husband (who's got his nose buried in a newspaper) with her elbow and nods towards Claire, _“Tan dramática, esta nena.”_ 12

Claire can feel the heat rising to her face, and has to stop herself from yelling at her right then and there. She can't be disrespectful to her mother, no matter how angry she is. That's just not how Latinos are. Instead she fakes a smile. “If you keep talking about my boyfriend that way, I will pack up and go back home. Don't make me do that, don't ruin Jaz's day.”

Inés puts her hands up in surrender, freshly manicured nails shining even under the dim kitchen light. _“¡Dios mío! Ya calmate, no te pongas histérica. No se puede hablar contigo cuando te pones asi!”_ 13 Inés then gets up and relocates to the back porch.

Claire knows she'll never win, so she lets it go. She won't hold her breath for an apology either, and she reminds herself that she's doing this for her sister and in two days, Claire will be a thousand miles away from her dear mother.

“I don't know how you put up with her,” Claire whispers to her father.

Arturo shrugs, _“Ya sabes cómo es tu madre. ¿Cómo es qué se dice?_ 'You learn to live with her.'” 14

“She clearly doesn't quite like Matt. What about you? Are you two of the same mind?”

He puts his newspaper down and has a strange look on his face. _“Que?”_ 15

Having English as her dominant language, she sometimes forgets that Arturo's English isn't perfect. _“Que si usted está de acuerdo con ella.”_ 16

He smiles at her and places his hand over hers. _“Ya eres adulta, mija. Tú puedes hacer tus propias decisiones. A mi me encanta Matt tanto como a un papa le puede encantar el novio de su hija. Okay, está ciego. Eso no importa. Lo que realmente importa es si él es una buena persona y que ustedes dos se aman.”_ 17

Claire smiles and has long forgotten the things her mother has said. When she doesn't reply, he sheepishly continues, _“¿Lo amas?”_ 18

She blushes because she doesn't want to lie to her father, who is now clearly trying to get some information he can pass on to the everyone else. Her entire family runs on gossip. Claire grins and instead of outright lying, she stands and pats his hand. “I'm going to sleep. You should, too. It's late.”

Arturo smirks and looks up at her. “Your face, it tells me everything.”

* * *

 

I don't know why you want it so tight, you're going to look like a sausage, my love. 1

Inés, don't be surprised if I give this daughter of yours a few good kicks2

I don't like any of this punk stuff!3

How's work?4

Is that where you met? You work all day and night, I know you don't have time for dates.5

I'm just saying that I assumed you didn't have time to do anything, because your job takes up the majority of your time. You didn't even tell me you had a boyfriend because you never call me.6

And how can he walk? Especially in New York. I imagine it's very dangerous.7

He walks with his legs, just like me. Just like you.8

Please, Claire, we are not the same. He's blind and I'm not. How can you be with someone like that?9

Mom, please,10

I am just saying what I think. You don't have to cry about it!11

So dramatic, this one.12

My God! Calm down, don't get hysterical. I can't talk to you when you get like this!13

You know how your mother is. How do you say it? 'You learn to live with her.' 14

What?15

I'm asking if you agree with her.16

You are an adult. You can make your own decisions. I like Matt as much as a father can like his daughter's boyfriend. So, he's blind. That doesn't matter. What really matters is that he's a good person and that you two love each other.17

Do you love him?18

**Author's Note:**

> Feedback is always welcome.


End file.
